Bottle closure and process of making same



June 8,1926. 1,588,250

' C.E.M0MANUS I BOTTLE CLOSURE AND PROCESS OF MAKING SAME Filed July 6, 1922 Iatented June 8, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT forrlce.

CHARLES E. MGMANUS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

BOTTLE CLOBIlRE AND PROCESS OF'IAKING SAME.

Application filed July 8;

My invention relates to a bottle closure of the type generally known asa crown cap, and more particularly to a closure of this kind in which the ordinary cork cushion is dispensed with; and to the process of l making such closures. I

' of natural or, so called, composition cork.

Such closures'have been in extensive use for many years. In-. the use of such closures, the scaling is eii'ected by the distortion of the sealing or cushion disk as a result of fairly heavy pressure applied thereto through the metallic shell While the disk is in engagement with the mouth of a bottle. With closures of this character, there is always apt to be a certain percentage of imperfect seals resultin in What is known in the trade as lcakers whic h is due in some instances to imperfections in the cork and in other instances to imperfections in the pourin lip of the bottle.

The cushion or sealing disk employed in such caps is sometimesacted upon by the contents of a bottle, some liquids having a tendency to blacken natural or composition cork and to attack the binder in the latter. To meet this condition, facing disks,- or a paraliin or other wax surface, are sometimes applied to the exposed surface of the cushion or sealing disk in order to protect this surface from the contents of a bottle.

l'l ith the above conditions in mind. I have provided a closure employing the form of. metal shell. usually used in crown caps, and a special form oi cushion, which will possess sufilcient resiliency to form an effective seal about the top of the mouth of a bottle and about the outer edge thereof, which sealing disk is of relatively less thickness thanthe ordinary cork or composition cork cushion or sealing disk, thus permitting a shell of less depth to be used without interfering with the locking; action of the fluted ed bezvath the bead of the neck of the bottle, This cushioning or sealing member 1922. semu no; 573,179.

is formed of soft vulcanized rubber bonded to the inner top of theshell and cupped so as toprovide a flange extending about the cylindrical top ortion of the shell, so as to provide flexib e;areas which may be engaged by the top of the. bottle and by the outside of theneckxof' the bottle so as-to provide a double seal as a result .of the" compression of the rubber adjacentboth of said areas, as the closure is applied to a bottle by the usual cappingmachine.

In order to avoid any; possibility of the contents of a bottle contacting with the rubber of the sealing medium, I provide the closure with a non-absorptive facing disk which is bonded: to the cushioning member in a osition. to be interposed between same and tie top of a bottle. -While this facing disk is ordinarily of a diameter to .en age seal about the edge of the bottle mouth notwithstanding thatth'ere may be a paper to glass seal at the top thereof. In producing bottle closures embodying; my invention, the difierence between the diameters of the rubber portion. of the cushion or seal and of the facing disk'therefor, necessitates the independent application of these portions of the cushionor seal -to the metal shell, the object of the process of my invention being to assemble these parts in a shell by a continuing operation,- so as to ensure the economical production ofthe closureand avoid a re-handling thereofafter the rubber has been applied to the shell in order to include the facing disk in the completed product.

The invention consists primarily of a bottle closure consisting of a shell having a fluted edge, a cylindrical top portion and a top adapted to beg'secure-dtotheneck of a bottle and'acushion within said shell-consisting of a skirted .resili'entmember covering the inner top of the shell and having I the skirt t hereof extend/parallel with and adjacent said top; and iii-"other novel characteristics, and in the process of making said shell all as hereinafter set forth and I 70 the top of a bottle, it does not extend 0. out

l the several views.

1e there- Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic showing of'the process or method of making the closure.

Like letters refer to like parts throughout In the embodiment of my 'invention shown in the drawings, I employ a metallie'shell having the ordinary tinted edge a, cylindrical top portion 1) and top a. Withinan'd bondedtothe to 'r: .oflthe shell and mean ing about the cy indrical .top portion b'adjacent thereto, is a ,cupped scaling, member ofsoft yuIca'niZedQruhber' or othersimilar resilient mater al, having a top I and skirt d' the'depthpf the skirt; d being sufiicient to en age the outside of the bead about the mout of bottle sotha't w hfen applying the closure to the bottle,',th e topxl of said mem ber willbe compressed throu bout-the area affording a double seal which will effectivelysure.

Iof engagement of the top of t ebottle therewith antl 'the skirt d will be compressed throughout the area of engagement of the skirt d with the outside of the bead, thus prevent the escape-"of liquid or gases from within-the bottle. j

Sineethematerial of the member d 'and the skirt-(l thereof is both impregzmihle to gasand liquid and i'mmun'to the action of many chemicals, the kind of hinder, adhesive or glue used in bonding: said member to the top of the shell and about the cylindrical portion'thcreof, is immaterial. although I preferablyuse 'the ordinary binders, adhesivcs or glues commonly used in this art that is either copal gum adhesive. or-adhesires containing albumen 'or casein, the so called solvents of which are removed All result of the a )plication' of heat therettiiltnd the body of which is-made tack'y as a-i'csnlt of the expulsion of moisture therefrom, and the application of heat thereto, whilethe members beingunited, are subjected to pres To avoid,-any--p'ossihility ofthe characteristic taste of rubber being imparted to the eontentsof a bottle, l'cover' this .area of the to )l, which lSSllbliUlnlTl-tlllyCOlHCltlGllt ,56/ with t iatlofthe top 0, withafacing disk [a of a fibrous material such as'paper impregnated with a suitable oil or wax w ich will make it substantially non-absorbent.

said sealingvdisk eybeing bonded or cemented to to the member (4 referably b means'of the ame binder,'ad esive' wag s as is used whenbonding said member d-. to"the shell. Th s construction. is desirable, particularly as it. presentslsfneat appearance to the fintl ished article and: does not materiallyin- (crease the cost of roduction of the closure,

since the entire 'cvic'e may be assembled with one handling thereof when following the process of my iuvention;

'hilc I preferably use a fluted skirt (1 upon the shell as a means for securing it to the neck of'a bottle, it is understood that the skirt may he so formed as to adapt the closure to different types of capping machines, theiluted skirt bein" old and well known in theart and forming no part of my present invention. \Vhilc I have referrcd to a mctalshell, it is apparent that the material of the shell is immaterial to my )resent invention. The use of a non-absorbent disk 0 is for the purpose of preventing the liquid contents of a bottle from attackin .the binder, adhesive or glue, bondin sai disk to the top (I of the sealing mem r. The inside of the shell is preferably coated with a suitable lacquer, baked after being applied thereto, as I find the use of a lacquer coated shell secures amore efl'ective bond between the cushion or sealin member than can be procured by a plain tin shell wherein grease or oil spots are apt to occur, and interfere with the proper bonding of the cushioning or scaling member to the shell. A shell embodying my-invention is produced by the process substantially as follows Y i The shell is first coated upon the inside thereof upon the top a and the cylindrical port on b adjacent: thereto, with a'suitable iindcr, adhesive or glue. A disk of soft vulcanizcd rubber and-of a diameter relatively greater than the top (3 is then fed in relation to said shell and forced thereinto by a suitable plunger f so as to simultaneously cut the material of the member I! to form the skirt 15', andat the same time bring the entire inner surface thereof into intimate engagement with the adhesive coated interior of the shell. The plunger f is then withdrawn and a suitableadhesive is applied to the em posed surface of the member (l but not of the flange (1 thereof, and-thereafter the disk as is deposited within the shell upon the adhesive coated surface ofthe member 01. When the-parts are in this relation, rcssuro is applied to the facing disk 0 an therethrough and through the top (I and 'thctop c by a plunger 9 and against a suitable backing hhoated in anv desired manner as by the gas burner 17. The closure is thus placed under a continuing pressure and subjected to heat for a sufficient interval to dry the moisture contained in the binder, adhesive or glue, and reduce said binder, adhesive. T01 glue to a, tacky condition, the continuing pressure ensuring the desired intimate relaxtion of th as in ordi ary gluing; After the shel and its contents have been Subjected to heat and pressure for the desired interval, approximately ten to twenty seconds, the pressure from the cap is relieved, and the cap is removed from adjacent the heating medium so as to subject it to a reduced temperature which will eflect the setting of the binder, adhesive or glue. This setting occurs very rapidly even under normal temperatures.

When a closure embodying my invention is applied by the usual capping machine, to the mouth of a bottle, the top d of the sealing or cushioning member adjacent thevtop c of the shell, will be compressed or distorted as a result of the pressure applied to the shell, and at the sa'me timetheskirt cl of the cushion or sealing member will be compressed by engagement with the outer edge of the head at the mouth of the bottle, thus securin a double seal through independent areas of the resilient member. I The facing disk 0 will yield sufiiciently and be subject to sufiicient distortion under such pressure to avoid the formation of any material channels between same and the top of the mouth of a bottle, notwithstanding that the totalaggregate thickness of the top d and of the member e willbe but approxi-' mately one thirty-secondth of an inch or less than one-half the thickness of the ordinary cork cushion disk.

ducing composition cork disks, and the method of producingthe closure does'not involve any rehfandling thereof.

Closures embodying my invention may be produced more economically than the old type of caps having a cork or composition cork seal,\ and will under all circumstances have greater uniformity in their sealing action than the old type of caps above referred, to, as little difficulty is experienced in bonding the member d--(Z" to the shell and the member a to the top (l, and voids such as are a frequent occurrence with natural or composition cork, do not occur in soft vulcanized rubber or the fibrous material of the facing disk e.

It is not my intention to limit the invention to the precise details of construction shown in the accompanying drawings, it being apparent that such may be varied without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention;

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected,

by Letters Patents, is

1. A bottle closure consisting of a shell having a fluted skirt,a cylindrical top portion and a top adapted to be secured to the ,neck

of a bottle and a cushion within saidshell consisting of a skirted resilient member covering the inner top of the shell, and having the skirt thereof extend parallel with and and in engagement with said cylindrical top portion extending about the edges thereof} adjacent said top, and a facingdisk of non- 4 absorbent material cemented to said skirted resilient member so as to 'be. positioned between said member and the contents of-ia bottle.

3. A bottle closure consistingjof a shell having a fluted skirt, a cylindrical top por- .tion and a topadapted'tobe secured'to the neck of a bottle and 'acushion'within said shell consisting of a skirted resilient member covering the inner top of the shell and having the skirt thereof extendparallel with and in engagement with said Tcylindricaltop portion extending about the edszes thereof adjacent said top, and a facing disk of nonabsorbentv material. the diameter of Which:-

is substantially the same as the ton of said shell, cemented to said skirtedresilient mem-.

ber so as to be positioned between said member and the contents of a bottle.

4. A bottle closure consisting of a shell having a fluted skirt, a cylindrical top portion and a top adapted'to be secured to the necl'rof a bottle and a cushion within said shell consisting of a skirted resilient member covering the inner topof the shell and having the skirt thereof extend parallel with and in engagement with said cylindrical top portion extending about the edges tlrereof adjaccnt said top, and a facing disk of'fibrous material impregnated with a moisture resisting substance, cemented to said skirted rcsilient member so as to be posit-ioned between said member and thdontntsof a bottle.

5. A bottle closure consisting of' aslioll having a fluted ski rt, a'"cylin'drictrlyttrpYpor--- tion and a top adapted to be seem-"ed to' tho neck of a bottle and a cushion witliingsaid shell and bonded thereto consistmg'ot' a skirted rubber member-coveringt-hednnel" top of the shell'andhaving the skirt thereof extend parallel with and in engagementwith said cylindrical top port on extending about p 6 positioned between said member and'the con 10 coated-shell having a fluted skirt, a'eylin-q drical topvportion and atop, and simul-' taneodsly forming said disk into cupshap'e :1) form a'skirtxahout'and in engagingrelation with'th'eeylindrical top portion'of said shell, 15' alppIyingadhesive-to the "bottom of said cup 5 aped resilient material, delivering a fibrous,

' engagement with the skirt of said disk, ap-

disk witliin' said'jcup shaped resilient material upon the adhesive coated surface thereof with the periphery thereof in substantial 20 plying pressure towards the top of said shell to said fibrous disk and said resilient material, simultaneously subjecting said shell and its contents to heat While such pressure is being applied thereto, and thereafter expos- 25 ing the cap to .a reduced temperature to set vthe adhesive.

'In Witness Whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature this 23rd day of June 1922; I

j CHARLES E. MGMANUS. 

